ABOUT THIS ALBUM

Album Notes

mikeryancoyotes.com

The latest independent release, The Fury, by Mike Ryan lead singer and songwriter from Coyote Dreams catches some songs from the vault and some new works expressing the humor and biting social commentary one expects from Mike. Texas legend, Augie Meyers (Texas Tornadoes, Sir Douglas Quintet), lends some organ/keys to a couple of tracks, including a reggae track. Co-produced by multi-Grammy award winning producer and owner of BlueCat Studios, Joe Trevino, the album has South Texas, New Orleans and Celtic punk/folk flavors smeared all over it. Slow roasted and hand crafted by friends and family.

The Fury opens with a full horn delivery of “Maybe,” anthemic and delightfully GenX in its sincere ambiguity. I was hooked, and that’s one of the songs I’ve come away with. New Orleans is listed in the album’s liner notes with gratitude and her influence is felt most fully in this track.The artist demonstrates well-traveled musical taste and capability across the gallery of songs, with style serving topic. Set in the context of the collection, I warmed to “Normally, Norma Lee” and “I’d Rather” with their rockabilly and pube-pop sensibilities, respectively. Both songs address challenged personalities in the dating pool in the language of our times. Set alongside world-punk “Jack Booted Thugs” and sixties stomp-box “Let’s Keep English” they hold their own as amused and courageous social commentary.My favorite song on the album is the immanently likable (and beautifully constructed) reggae bed-time story “Under The Influence.” A tension of ideas exists between the sweetness of the “Under …” vision and “Our World is Doomed,” but maybe that anti-kumbaya sing-along is a joke of the new order. You know, jokes that aren’t really funny. Either way, “Maybe” covers the conceptual rift, as does “Shallow,” in its way. “Babylon” is an ombre-colored Sunday morning statement, and its placement after “Under The Influence” is satisfyingly thoughtful. And because it all worked so well together, I appreciated nuevo celtic “A Lock Of Her Hair” as I would a Pissarro in a gallery of Picassos and Soutines.

All of the production elements of this independent release are top shelf (I'll let you read the big names in the liner notes on your own copy) and it's enjoyable from start to finish.

Glad to have found this musical idea artist. Jenni Mansfield Peal, www.everybodysfolkmusicblog.org